The DA's "shambolic attendance monitoring system" shows it needs Parliament's attendance regulating systems and, therefore, will find the proposed parliamentary electronic monitoring system "very useful", says the ANC.
The ruling party has released a statement referring to a report in the Sunday Times yesterday, which claims the DA has upset several of its frontline MPs who were given poor marks in recent performance assessments. According to the report, the DA's attendance records are "a thumb-suck" and parliamentary attendance records had to be requested.
The ANC statement claims the newspaper report "paints a picture of a party with no reliable attendance monitoring system and its caucus leaders in the dark regarding MPs' attendance of parliamentary meetings".
DA chief whip Watty Watson has hit back, saying the Sunday Times article is more about the DA's assessment system in the Western Cape and very little about Parliament, and that the ANC is disingenuously trying to fudge the issue with its statement. "[This] has absolutely nothing to do with Parliament and I cannot react to it."
Watson says the DA's use of Parliament attendance records does not indicate the party is unable to accurately capture MPs' attendance of its caucus meetings, as the ANC statement suggests. "It was agreed at the Chief Whips Forum, some time ago, that the secretaries of [the] Portfolio Committees would submit attendance records to parties on a regular basis, particularly for the benefit of smaller parties who have only one member on a committee or, in some cases, no permanent representation on a given committee," says Watson.
"This agreement has unfortunately not been adhered to by all committees and has been raised at the Chief Whips Forum on many occasions. We have two members on most committees and, therefore, maintain our own records, but we do comparisons using the committee attendance records."
Electronic monitoring imminent?
Watson has also denied the ANC's claims that the electronic monitoring system is set to be implemented in the next term of Parliament. "No such decision has been taken. Two versions were presented to the National Assembly Chief Whips Forum and comments were called for. Implementation would be totally illegal as it has not even been discussed by the Parliamentary Oversight Authority."
ANC spokesperson Moloto Mothapo says the electronic monitoring system is an administrative process by Parliament and does not need political parties' buy-in to be implemented. "Those who are against it - tough luck. It will go ahead regardless." He reiterated that the ANC supports the implementation of the system, as it will benefit all parties, including those whose own attendance monitoring systems are "poor and unreliable".
Opposition parties have strongly opposed the proposal of an electronic monitoring system in Parliament, which will reportedly use radio frequency identification technology, combined with a biometric system that requires MPs to scan their fingerprints to register their attendance.
FF Plus Parliamentary spokesperson Anton Alberts has said the party will continue to oppose the proposed system, as parliamentary attendance is a problem emanating from the ANC and the Parliamentary management office, and not the opposition parties.
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